


This Time Around

by literaryempress



Series: Max and Isaac's Infinite Storybook [13]
Category: Shameless (US)
Genre: Acceptance, Adolescent Sexuality, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Bullying, Coming Out, Domestic, Emotional Baggage, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Facebook, Family, Family Feels, Father-Son Relationship, Implied/Referenced Abuse, Implied/Referenced Homophobia, M/M, Married Couple, Pansexual Character, Past Abuse, Post-Season/Series 04, Sexuality, Social Media, Teenagers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-10-14
Updated: 2016-10-14
Packaged: 2018-08-22 10:25:29
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 8,441
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8282527
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/literaryempress/pseuds/literaryempress
Summary: A couple of weeks after Pride (And a Lot of Prejudice). Mentions of 4x11. Mickey finds out that his co-worker's daughter came out, which leads to Ian and Mickey discussing Mickey's coming out process. Meanwhile, Isaac makes the decision to officially come out to his family.





	

Mickey had been sitting on the cold couch for about an hour now, not doing particularly much except scrolling through his Facebook feed and staring off into space. He had been nursing a beer moments ago, but he abandoned it in favor of checking his phone notifications. Most of them were from Mickey’s co-workers. He only knew about four people at his workplace in general - and out of those four, he was close to two of them. One of the two had made a long Facebook message talking about his daughter coming out as a lesbian, which garnered about ten to fifteen likes and eight hearts, according to Facebook’s reaction system. In the comments section of his post were filled with nothing but acceptance and praise for the fifteen-year-old girl.

_ She’s so fucking lucky _ , Mickey thought as his eyes stuck to his phone screen. Mickey had been wanting to respond to Timothy’s Facebook update for a whole hour now, but he just couldn’t figure out what to say. He was nothing short of proud of Erin for the decision she chose to make. She’s younger than Mickey was when he first came out of the closet, but she knew what she wanted to do and how she wanted to do it. She may have had her doubts along the way, but in the end, Timothy didn’t have a problem with it. He might not understand some things about Erin’s sexuality, but he’s more than willing to learn more about it so he would know how to defend and protect his daughter.

Erin has a really great father, Mickey will admit. It almost made Mickey wish he could start his whole coming out process over again sometimes.

Mickey doesn’t doubt being out of the closet. That’s definitely not the problem. Right now, Mickey’s happy. He’s been in a loving relationship with his husband for longer than ten years, and they’ve raised their 20- and 17-year-old sons as perfectly as any parent could. Max and Isaac are fucking perfect kids, and one of the reasons why they turned out the way they did was because they had Ian Gallagher, Mickey’s first-ever boyfriend and the love of Mickey’s life, as an influence. Ian’s lived with five other siblings for so long before he and Mickey spent more time together - three of them being younger than him - so he’s pretty experienced in terms of taking care of kids. Max will have his moments where he goofs off with his parents, but for the most part, Ian’s taught him how to be the man he is today, and Mickey couldn’t be any prouder. The same thing applies to Isaac as well. Ian’s always encouraged him with his homework and helped him study for quizzes and tests, and now Isaac is practically passing his English classes with straight A’s.

Had Mickey stayed in the closet, and he wouldn’t have all of this. He wouldn’t be able to share a home with Ian and their two kids. Instead, he would be back at the Milkovich residence, being stuck in a relationship he never wanted in the first place. He would have to live that life for the next ten to fifteen years, with his father breathing down his back, and Mickey would have never gotten the freedom he has now.

The thought of his father and his coming out experience still left a sour taste in Mickey’s mouth. Again, it’s not that he regrets coming out, because if he didn’t, he wouldn’t have Ian and the boys. Mickey just wishes he had a father like Erin does who accepts him for who he is. Frank Gallagher was never the best father in the world, especially not to Ian, but he could give a shit less whether or not Ian was gay. He seemed to go along with it and mind his own business, which is a hell of a lot better than the treatment Mickey had been getting towards Terry over the years.

Mickey supposes that there are gay kids around the world going through the same issues he is, if not worst. That didn’t make him feel any better, though. He’s loathed his dad with a passion for years now, but a part of him wished he were different - more importantly, he wished he was the father Mickey never had the opportunity to have.

Mickey’s thoughts were interrupted as he heard footsteps from the master bedroom leading to the living room. “Mickey?” Ian had a concerned look on his face as he walked over in Mickey’s direction, taking a seat on the couch next to his husband. “You okay?” Mickey nodded, his eyes returning to the screen in his hands. He leaned into Ian’s touch as the redhead brought a hand up to Mickey’s head, tugging Mickey closer to Ian’s lips so Ian could kiss his temple.

The two of them fell into a semi-comfortable silence as Ian rested his head against Mickey’s shoulder, watching the shorter man staring blankly at Timothy’s Facebook status. Ian glanced at the message, reading each line until he got to the bottom of the status, just before the comments came into view. Mickey had pressed the comment bar for the fifteenth time this afternoon, a sigh being released from his lips as he tried figuring out what the hell he should write.

“Is that Timothy from work?”

Mickey nodded. “Her daughter came out today.”

“He’s okay with it?” Mickey nodded again. “Well, what’s wrong with just saying congrats?”

“It’s…” Mickey started but suddenly uncertain of what he wanted to tell Ian. “It’s not that simple for me, man.”

“How so?” Ian felt Mickey’s shoulders slump, which prompted him to lift his head off of Mickey to properly look his husband in the eye. Mickey placed his phone on the coffee table in front of them before he turned around to face Ian.

“Don’t you ever wish it was...just…”

“Just what?”

“I don’t fucking know, man. Different?” Mickey replied with a confused shrug.

Ian’s eyebrows furrowed at him. “Wish what was different?”

Mickey gulped as he stared in Ian’s direction for a second, his eyes suddenly falling to their laps. “When I...when I came out.”

Mickey’s coming out experience was one for the ages, Ian will admit. It definitely wasn’t the easiest considering that both Ian and Mickey were both born and raised in Chicago’s South Side, where being gay earned you a death sentence. Having Terry Milkovich as a father made the situation much worse. Ian could remember the day like it was yesterday, and every time he thought about Terry’s fists smashing into Mickey’s face, forcing the blood right out of it, Ian wanted to punch the fucker back.

Luckily Terry is long gone from the equation, so Ian and Mickey don’t have to deal with him, though they still have to deal with the aftermath of Terry’s abuse. Mickey will be fine on most days, especially when his mind is stuck on spending time with Ian and the kids. Oftentimes, though, like this one, Terry would find a way to seep back into Mickey’s mind. Ian didn’t blame him. In fact, Ian wished his upbringing wasn’t the way it was growing up. At the same time, Mickey wouldn’t be Mickey if it were anyway different.

Mickey shook his head slightly, his eyes still on his and Ian’s laps. “I’m not...I’m not saying everyone has it fucking made or anything like that. You know?” Ian nodded. “I ain’t saying that everything is sunshine and rainbows or nothing, but…” Mickey shrugged. “Fuck -”

“Mick?” Ian placed both of his hands on Mickey’s wrists in an attempt to calm him down. He wasn’t having a panic attack or anything, but Mickey looked as though he was internally breaking down. Mickey glanced up to meet Ian’s eyes, even though he was feeling somewhat shaky about bringing up the topic to begin with. It’s a very touchy subject for either one of them to discuss, regardless of how much they’ve grown from it.

“I know I probably sound fucking paranoid to you, and that’s fine -”

“Yeah, you’re right. It is fine,” Ian interrupted, gripping onto his wrists slightly. “It’s fine to feel the way you do, because no matter how far out of our lives your dad is, he’ll never truly be gone, alright?” Mickey gulped as his eyes fell to their laps again. He really wished he could make all of his memories of his father go away, but he knew he couldn’t. Ian was right. Those memories would remain engraved in his skull no matter what Mickey did.

Ian caressed the tops of Mickey’s hands with his own thumbs as he looked down at the tattoos on Mickey’s digits. They’ve come so far from all of this - not just Mickey’s struggles with coming out, but also the two hundred and one dilemmas they’ve ran into throughout the course of their lifetime. They made it together, and that’s what makes Ian so proud of the two of them. He loves Mickey with all his heart, and he knows how much Mickey does as well. Mickey has done a really great job of expressing his emotions since he’s come out of the closet - especially since he and Mickey moved out of the Gallagher house and the Milkovich house respectively. Truth is, Ian’s the only one Mickey’s comfortable talking with, aside from maybe a couple of people at Mickey’s job, but that doesn’t matter. He’s taking baby steps, as Mickey should. There’s no need for him to fast-pace anything.

“Look,” Ian told Mickey after a moment of silence, “I know I was hard on you the day you came out -”

“I know you fucking were.”

“Mickey, please let me explain myself here,” Ian begged. They’ve talked about their bar conversation so many times in the past, and every time they did, Mickey could feel the hairs stand up on his neck. It wasn’t in Ian’s place to convince Mickey to do something he didn’t want to do, and Ian wishes he could erase that aspect about Mickey’s coming out experience, although he’s certain that he can’t. Ian could feel his stomach turn every time Mickey got irritable about the mention of Ian practically walking out the door and Mickey standing there, silently begging him to come back. Sometimes Ian is surprised that Mickey still put up with him after that, to be perfectly honest.

“I’m very well aware that we established that I was in the wrong, alright?” Ian explained, and Mickey nodded, keeping his eyes down and away from Ian. “I was fucking wrong. I shouldn’t have said and done what I did, Mickey. Do you understand?” Mickey didn’t nod or give a verbal reply, which made Ian slightly nervous, but he continued. “But think about it: if it didn’t happen, we wouldn’t be here, alright?”

“If you haven’t fucking peer pressured my ass?”

Ian’s shoulders slumped. “Whatever you want us to call it, but regardless, if...it didn’t happen, Terry wouldn’t have gone back to prison, and you would have to deal with him for the rest of your fucking life, Mickey. I don’t want that for you. I never wanted that for you. I never want you to have to put up with that sack of shit ever again, alright?”

Mickey sighed. He had to admit that Ian had a point on that. Had he just let bygones be bygones, Terry probably would have continued to use his son as a human punching bag, forcing him in one direction and then into another. He didn’t have a problem with Svetlana, the woman Terry forced Mickey to have sex with the day Terry walked in on his son and Ian in the living room. He just had a problem with the situation, having to fuck her right in front of his father and his boyfriend. It was traumatizing for Mickey, and he’ll never get over it.

He still thinks about the words that came out of Ian’s mouth the day Mickey came out at the bar. They weren’t the words Mickey wanted to hear at all, and Mickey understands now that Ian’s sorry for it. Mickey had been too scared to allow Ian to walk out of his life and leave him to tend to Svetlana and his abusive piece of shit father. Ian’s the only person in Mickey’s life who gave him more than comfort and security. He couldn’t just let him go.

Years later...and he and Ian are here. They’re still together - hell, more than together, but fucking married with two kids in their own home. Terry’s probably rotting in hell somewhere in the Milkovich house, so neither one of them has to worry about him anymore. It’s a fucked up kind of blessing in disguise, but Ian’s right. If Mickey hadn’t put his foot down, he wouldn’t be sure when he would have the opportunity to do it again.

“You had a good heart back there, you know?” Mickey finally spoke, and Ian listened. “You’ve always had a good heart, and that’s one thing I still love about you now.” Mickey paused for a moment before he added, “But that doesn’t mean I don’t want to do things on my own terms. You understand me?”

Ian nodded, his eyes falling to their hands in between them. “It won’t happen again, Mick. I promise.” Mickey nodded before scooting closer to Ian, placing his head on Ian’s shoulder instead of the other way around. The two of them were quiet for only a few seconds, and then Ian spoke again. “You know I’d do anything for you, though, right?”

“Seeing as how you literally told me you would jump off a burning bridge for me when you proposed, yeah.” The two of them giggled at that memory. It happened before they made the decision to start their own family - in mid-February. Ian had taken Mickey to the movies and then to dinner afterwards. That had to be one of the best days Mickey’s ever had.

“No, I’m serious,” Ian responded, looking down at Mickey’s icy blue eyes - the same eyes Ian fell in love with at fifteen years old. “You want me to change the way I go about things, and I’ll fucking do it, okay?” Ian waited for Mickey to nod, and when Mickey did, Ian continued. “I don’t want to be the old, naive version of me anymore. If something’s fucking bugging you, or if I did something wrong, you come talk to me about it, okay?”

“Ian, come on, man. It’s not -”

“Don’t tell me it’s not a big deal, Mickey, because to you, your coming out experience should be a big fucking deal.” Mickey pressed his lips together, his eyes falling back to his lap again. “Like, who the fuck cares if it was our past? It’s our fucking present, too, because there’s always gonna be someone who doesn’t know who we are. There will always be at least one person.”

Ian had a point about that. He could remember sometime after the day he came out to his dad when he made a visit over to the Gallagher house. Apparently Veronica found out from Kev, and she managed to let Fiona in on it, which prompted them to confront Mickey. At the time, Mickey wasn’t comfortable about talking about his own sexuality being that he was fresh out of the closet and all, but he could remember Veronica and Fiona having nonchalant responses towards it. Neither one of them really cared whether or not Mickey’s gay. His coming out to them wasn’t official since they found out from a primary source, but he’s out regardless, and the women accepted him for who he is. Mickey was never scared of the Gallaghers finding out as much as he was scared about Terry finding out, but in this society, one will never truly know how another will react.

“You know, when I started working there - at that advertising company - I thought about what would happen if…” Mickey shrugged. “You know.” Ian nodded. “I never really heard one other guy talk about going home to their husbands, or one other guy talk about their sons or daughters inviting their boyfriends or girlfriends over to the house or anything like that.” A pause. “You know, I just...thought they wouldn’t…”

“Like you working there if they found out -”

“Yeah,” Mickey answered. He watched as Ian’s right hand gripped onto Mickey’s left in comfort. “And then Tim saw that tiny photo I hung up in the office.” Mickey chuckled. “It’s so fucking small, man. I didn’t even think anyone would notice.” Ian nodded again. “But he did, and…”

“And?”

“He didn’t even make it into a big, fucking deal, you know? He just started asking a bunch of fucking questions about you - did you play football in high school, what you were up to the day before - all that shit.” Mickey slowly nodded as he turned his head back in Ian’s direction. “And for the first time in my life, I felt like I had someone outside of my family I could actually trust.”

They both were firm believers of not trusting people until you actually get to know them, but to hear that come out of Mickey’s mouth warmed Ian’s heart. All he ever wanted for Mickey was to find someone he could turn to when he, Isaac, Max, Mandy, or anyone else in their family weren’t able to be there with him. Timothy’s a really nice man, too, from what Ian’s gotten from him. Ian went to a couple of holiday parties at Mickey’s work, and he’s spoken with Timothy on occasion. He’s a big Cubs fan with four kids and received a 3.8 GPA at Roosevelt University. Timothy even had the chance to meet Max and Isaac when they were nine and six years old respectively, and both boys always had fun playing games with him in his office whenever Timothy had free time.

The whole family loved Timothy, and it was mostly due to the fact that Mickey’s able to trust him and be comfortable around him, especially after finding out about Mickey’s sexuality. Timothy sometimes has his slip-ups, and sometimes he’ll be lectured on how some people out there frown upon his words or actions, but he’s learning. He corrects himself or apologizes for the mistakes he’s made, because he cares about everyone and their well-being, no matter what sexuality they are. And now that his daughter Erin came out of the closet, he has a pretty solid idea on how he should support her.

A lot of people in this world could learn a thing or two from Timothy.

Mickey sighed for a brief moment, his eyes still on the green ones above him. There will never be a day he’ll stop loving Ian, and he really appreciates his apologies, even if Mickey came out years ago already. Relationships are heavily built around trust, as they should, and Mickey trusts that Ian wants to better himself the next time a new person walks into their lives. Mickey knows he would do the same for him. “I don’t know if coming out will ever be that easy again, but…”

“It never will.”

“Right,” Mickey agreed, “but…”

“If someone asks, you don’t have to tell them right away, if you don’t want to, especially not if they’re someone brand new. Just go at your own pace, and you’ll be fine.”

Mickey slowly nodded, his eyes closing for a brief second before he glanced back down at their hands on Mickey’s lap. Mickey squeezed Ian’s hand back just a little bit, feeling the warmth from Ian’s palm radiate on his own hand. Mickey’s eyes lingered there a little bit, processing Ian’s words for a moment. Some of the people in this world - specifically the younger generations - are becoming more accepting of the LGBTQIA+ community, which is what Mickey’s genuinely proud of, but there’s still a great number of people who frown upon the idea of two men sleeping together, like it’s the most foreign thing in existence. Mickey couldn’t imagine encountering a straight man in public, shouting homophobic slurs to him and Ian while they’re out having dinner. That reminded him too much of his own father, the one person whom Mickey tried his hardest to get away from. Not only that, but Ian would also be a target, and the last thing Mickey wanted was for someone to mess with Ian Gallagher. Not on his watch.

“Same for you, too, alright?” Mickey asked, his head lifting back up to meet Ian’s eyes again. “You…” Mickey gulped. “You don’t have to do it...in that moment or whatever...if you don’t fucking want to, alright?”

Ian gulped as he nodded. He could tell Mickey was thinking about him. Ian’s wondered for the longest time what would happen if he ended up in one of those kinds of situations. He had a dream once about a woman on the CTA calling him an abomination for loving other men. That same night, Ian woke up with the chills and couldn’t get himself back to sleep. That was long before he came out to Lip and Fiona, long before he started fucking Kash, long before he knew he had a thing for Mickey. Ian wasn’t sure if he liked being gay at the time, but then he slowly but surely started to realize that being gay wasn’t something he could escape. He will be gay as long as he shall live - maybe in eternity as well. Ian was made to be this way, and no straight man or woman pouring holy water over his head will reverse that. And if they had a problem with it, Ian could honestly give a shit less, because at least he’s here with his husband and two kids, the three people in Ian’s life whom he’d never trade for anything in the world.

Ian and Mickey had been staring into each other’s eyes for about a minute, and the silence was suddenly broken when Ian’s voice cracked. “I love you.”

“I love you, too.” The two met each other in the softest of kisses - one filled with more emotion than lust. Life was hard for the both of them, and it’s still hard to this day. If Ian and Mickey had life their way, no one in the world would be homophobic, and maybe Mickey would actually have a real father-son relationship with Terry. They wouldn’t have to turn their heads every which way before they kissed each other on the street.

Then again, Ian and Mickey liked their little bubble as well. It fit the both of them just right. They didn’t need anyone else to make their bubble any better.

* * *

Isaac had been itching to go back on Twitter or Facebook to make a post about something. Anything. He hadn’t been on there since Mickey turned off his notifications a couple of weeks ago.  Isaac feels as though he’s been closed off from society, even if it’s just his high school classmates. He has the company of his older brother until he goes back to Western Illinois for school, but that wasn’t enough for Isaac. He hasn’t felt this secluded from a group of people in a while, and all he wants is to talk to somebody.

At the same time, he can’t find it in him to make a post. He can’t find it in him to update his status about where he had been and what he’s up to. On one hand, the people reading his feed wouldn’t find it in him to care, which was something Isaac could rightfully accept. On the other hand, however, if someone were to find out about his resurfacing back into the social media world, the annoying and hurtful messages would most likely appear. He’s blocked a couple of people from his social media accounts, and that should feel like a breath of fresh air to Isaac, but it wasn’t. There were some people Isaac’s not sure about that he hadn’t blocked yet, and Isaac’s honestly worried that he would regret looking onto his posts for those people who gay bashed him at that end-of-the-year party in June.

For the record, Isaac isn’t gay; he’s pansexual. It took him a little longer than expected for him to come to that conclusion, but with a couple of private conversations with Mickey, he’s been able to accept his own reality. He hadn’t told Max or Ian yet, partially because he’s not even sure if he’s a hundred percent ready to accept the risk of outing himself. He’s not afraid of his brother or his other dad by any means necessary; he knows how much they love and care about him. Isaac and Max have been connected at the hip since they learned how to crawl. Max encouraged him at every opportunity he could. Same with Ian. They, like Mickey, are family. Isaac knows they’re family, and he’s grateful to have them in his family.

Isaac really wants to come out so he won’t have to continue hiding things from Ian and Max anymore, but he’s been battling within himself for the longest time on when he should carry out that task. Ian’s gay, just like Mickey is gay, so he should be okay with it. With Max, it’s slightly different. He’s the only straight member of the Gallagher-Milkovich household, and after living with two gay dads, he should be fine with it - or that’s what Isaac believes.

What if Isaac coming out of the closet managed to change the dynamic that the brothers have had all this time? That’s the question Isaac had been asking himself the most within these past couple of weeks. What if, at some point in his life, Isaac wanted to be with another man? How would Max even react to that? Would he just be disgusted at him for wanted another guy’s dick inside him? Isaac could never tell what Max was thinking a lot of times, and that made Isaac’s own choices look so confusing.

Isaac’s thumb tapped the side of his phone a couple of times, contemplating on the next thing he should do. His phone screen dimmed a little bit, indicating that it was close to locking again. Isaac’s not sure if he’s ready to face heartbreak once again. The students at Barden College Prep have made it perfectly clear that they don’t give a shit about who he really is and what his true feelings are.

Well, except for Lydia Sanders, the hostess of the end-of-the-year party. She’s usually the socialite of the school, interacting with the most popular students in the entire student body. On the night of her party, though, she actually showed some compassion towards her fellow classmate who had been hurting that night due to her so-called friends’ hurtful words. Ever since that night, Lydia had deleted a couple of numbers from her phone, and Lydia specifically asked her parents to prevent certain people from coming to her house again - for some of them, until they apologized to Isaac, and for others, just forever. Since the night of the party, only one other person other than Lydia apologized to him, which was honestly better than nothing.

He didn’t need the other students’ apologies anyway. He was done with needing validation or respect from people who didn’t give it to him. He has people in his life who actually give a shit about him, and Isaac is honestly thankful for that.

And that was what made Isaac get up off his bed, throw his phone on the mattress, and head out of his own room towards his brother’s. He wanted Ian and Max to know now. Mickey’s known since the night of the party, and he’s kept Isaac’s promise about not telling Ian or Max about his sexuality until Isaac was ready to announce it. Now he’s ready. He’s ready to come out after years of being trapped in the dark.

Isaac strolled down the hallway towards Max’s bedroom door with the little Western Illinois University flag taped against it. Western Illinois was Max’s top-choice school in Illinois, so it made sense for him to place the school’s logo on literally everything he owned. The redhead was playing loud music on the other side of his door - or maybe it was some PC game he was continuing. Isaac wasn’t sure.

“Max!” Isaac shouted, banging on the door and waiting for a response.

“The fuck you want, man?” Max’s muffled voice called back.

“Open the fucking door!” Being that their fathers are Ian Gallagher and Mickey Milkovich, of course their crude behaviors had developed with time, and their language had become a lot more colorful. In some situations, Ian and Mickey didn’t mind, but when one of them or both of them were upset, it’s best for Isaac and Max not to cross them with their variations of the word  _ fuck _ .

Max finally swung the door open, his frown deepening in confusion at his little brother standing in front of him. Isaac caught a small whiff of cigarette smoke when the door opened, which slightly annoyed Isaac since he has asthma and that Max had taken up the smoking habit from Mickey and Ian since he was eighteen. Isaac didn’t want his brother and his two fathers dying of lung cancer, but it was hard to get them to stop when they had literally boxes of smokes in each other’s rooms.

That’s another topic Isaac will probably touch on another day, though.

“I need to talk to you,” Isaac started.

“Can it fucking wait?” Max asked, his thumb pointing back to his desktop computer screen on his desk. “I was beating this other user in  _ World of Warcraft _ before your ass came bustin’ in.”

“You can go back to that shit later, man,” Isaac explained, starting to turn on his heel. “Come downstairs. I need to talk to all of you.”

Max frowned a little more but elected to close his bedroom door behind him and follow his little brother towards the stairs. “This some family meeting type of shit?”

“It might as well be,” Isaac sighed as he headed down the stairs.

As the two brothers got closer to the bottom landing of the stairs, their eyes fell upon Ian and Mickey sitting next to each other on the couch. Ian had whispered something into Mickey’s ear, and Mickey giggled in response. Isaac chuckled to himself the day Ian reminded him about Isaac seeing them kiss when he was five years old. He used to do it to anyone who kissed in front of him, really, because he was so young and so oblivious to what kind of love people like Ian and Mickey really possessed. Now he understood how much in love Ian and Mickey were, and that made Isaac want to have a love as powerful as that.

That day will come, Isaac is sure. First, though, he has to get past square one, which is telling Ian and Max who he really is. For Isaac, that felt like a pretty intense challenge, even if Mickey already knows about him.

“Dad? Ian?” Both Ian and Mickey were taken out of their gaze on each other in favor of turning their heads in the direction of their sons. Isaac moved towards the coffee table, taking a seat on the clear spot next to Mickey’s phone and open can of beer. Max rounded the couch until he was sitting on the other side of Ian. All three of them were facing Isaac, and that only intensified his inner feelings.

“Hey, man,” Mickey spoke, sitting up some in his seat. Ian still had his arm wrapped around Mickey’s next comfortably, looking expectantly at Isaac, even if he wasn’t expecting anything in particular. “What’s up? You guys need something, or -”

“I have to talk to you about something,” Isaac explained. He turned his head towards Ian and Max for a moment and then corrected himself. “Actually...I have to tell Ian and Max something, if you don’t mind…”

Mickey nodded. He had an idea on where this was headed.

The room was suddenly quiet - a little too quiet. Isaac’s leg bounced a little bit, and he folded his hands on his lap as he looked Ian and Max in the eye. He hadn’t rehearsed this at all, and the sheer thought of blowing this up was getting to him. Isaac had to stay calm for at least a minute so he could get his words out, but he couldn’t stay calm, and nothing seemed to come out of his mouth. It’s like he was suffocating a little bit, and Isaac didn’t want to have a panic attack in front of his own family.

“Isaac?” Ian asked, suddenly concerned again. “Are you okay, man? You look nervous.”

“N-no, uh -” Isaac scratched the back of his head, feeling as though he’s contradicting his own response. “I’m fine. I’m okay.” A beat followed, and Isaac swallowed, making sure his throat was clear before he started to explain himself.

“Ian, I…I know I had been a little...distant from you lately,” Isaac started. “You know, since the night Dad picked me up after the party?” Ian nodded. He remembered seeing Mickey talk on the phone to Isaac, telling him to calm down and give him directions on where to go. Ian had been worried about him all night, and when Mickey was able to bring him home, Ian thought he would get the answers he needed as to why Isaac would wander around downtown Chicago by himself.

But he didn’t. Isaac had been a little distant after that night. Regardless, Ian gave him the space he needed. That didn’t mean Ian didn’t lose concern for his little boy. He still thought about him and what he was probably thinking about. He just didn’t pressure him to talk to him about the night of the party. He wanted Isaac to come to him on his own.

And now he’s here. He’s finally opening up to him, and for that alone, Ian’s very proud of him.

“I just…” Isaac shrugged. “I kinda had a really rough couple of weeks...ever since the party.” Ian nodded, leaning a little closer to Isaac. “Um…” Isaac turned his head towards Mickey for a second only to see his father nod a couple of times, letting him know that he got this. Isaac isn’t totally sure if he does, but he really hopes Mickey is right when he implies it.

“They were having this...um...game at the party, and…” Isaac squeezed his hands tighter. He was getting closer and closer to the point, and he couldn’t tell what Ian and Max were thinking or feeling, but their facial expressions just shook his nerves. “Eventually, when it got to my turn, I was supposed to…” Isaac gulped. “I…”

“Wait, what game?” Max interrupted, a little confused, but Mickey shushed him before all three pairs of eyes were back on Isaac.

Isaac ignored his shivering upper body in favor of just getting to the point. “I was supposed to kiss a boy.” No one reacted yet. “He didn’t want to do it, but he didn’t back out or anything.” Isaac shrugged. “It didn’t seem like a big deal to me at the time. There were girls playing the game who had to kiss each other, too, but it was only, like, a peck on the lips or something like that. It wasn’t as intense…”

“This was fucking Spin the Bottle, right?”

“Max, Jesus…”  Mickey replied.

“He wasn’t being specific. How was I supposed to know?”

Isaac turned his head towards Mickey and said, “Don’t worry about it, Dad. It’s fine.” Mickey nodded before Isaac turned back around towards Max. “And, uh, yeah. It was Spin the Bottle.” Max nodded, finally getting the answer he needed.

The room got quiet again for another minute or so before Isaac gathered up the courage to speak again. “I decided to go for it, just to figure out...what it felt like…” He ran a hand through his jet black hair. Ian and Mickey nodded, listening attentively to their son speak. He was silent again, his fingers carded through the short, black strands, and Mickey knew he was getting to the point of the story he hated the most. So Mickey extended his hand over to Isaac’s forearm, and Isaac immediately turned back towards Mickey. Ian and Max were looking in between the father and son, watching as Mickey whispered lowly to Isaac and making sure he was alright.

Ian now knew why neither Mickey nor Isaac discussed that night. He understood why, and it hurt Ian just to know what Isaac was implying here.

After a couple more seconds, Isaac turned back in Ian and Max’s direction, letting out a shaky sigh before he continued. “I…”  _ Fuck _ . This was so hard for him, and a part of him feels as though it shouldn’t be, but it is. “I...like boys...the same way I like girls…” The room was still silent, save for Isaac’s slightly heavy breathing. Isaac just wanted Ian or Max - or the both of them - to say something so he wouldn’t have to sit here feeling so emotional about all of this. He’s gotten a lot of support from Mickey within the past couple of weeks, and as much as Isaac appreciates Mickey’s support, all he wants right now is to hear something -  _ anything _ \- from his other dad and his older brother.

Another second later, Isaac could feel himself getting more paranoid. “These past couple of weeks...have been really fucking hard on me,” Isaac continued, his leg bouncing more frequently. Mickey started to notice as Isaac glanced down to the floor once again. “After...after the party - after Dad picked me up - I thought...maybe I would wake up feeling better, feeling refreshed, like the new day would give me something good to talk about and keep my mind off...the text messages...and the Facebook posts...and the tweets.” Isaac shook his head, focusing on particularly nothing at all to prevent himself from looking his two dads and his brother in the eye.

And then he felt his throat tighten some. He wasn’t emotionally prepared for this conversation at all. “I just…” Isaac really wanted to cry again. It’s been weeks since he’s let out his feelings to one of his family members. Within these past couple of weeks, though, he’s cried in bed about three times. A lot of times, his brother would talk to him about other things, like the football games his school won or some dumb encounter that happened at his Physics class, and Isaac would get distracted enough to not feel so hurt about the party.

But bad memories are never truly gone. Ian, Mickey, Max, and Isaac are all aware of this. The bad memories are always there, lurking in the shadows.

“They were fucking bullying you?” Max’s defensive side was suddenly creeping out of him. He didn’t like it when someone messed with his brother like that. He would fight everyone at Barden College Prep so they would know not to fuck with Isaac Gallagher-Milkovich. Max may be long gone from that school, but a piece of him is still there, walking in the hallway among a bunch of ignorant assholes with no respect or no common sense whatsoever.

Mickey gulped at Max’s sudden reaction. “Max -”

“They were poking fun of my little brother,” Max explained, gesturing towards Isaac. The younger redhead turned back around towards Isaac and asked, “Why didn’t you tell us about them? We could have kicked their asses.”

Isaac gulped as he stared back at his older brother. Truthfully, Max is the best older brother any younger brother could ask for. He’ll have his days where he’s just flat-out annoying, but what older brother isn’t annoying? And without Max, Isaac wouldn’t have someone to stick up to him as much as Max already does on a daily basis. Isaac doesn’t want to be fully dependent of Max or anything like that, but it’s nice to have someone who will loyally stay by your side and make sure you’re safe in a world full of hatred and disappointment.

As much as Isaac appreciated hearing Max’s words, though, there was nothing he could physically do to the kids at his school to help him with what he’s going through. Forget the fact that there were too many of them tossing homophobic language in Isaac’s way, but no one can just punch the homophobia out of someone. It’s a learned characteristic they have received from their parents, the media, or a mix of both. No amount of physical force is going to force someone to not act the way they do.

Isaac is a seventeen-year-old Barden College Prep student who likes guys just as much as he likes girls, and his fellow classmates, being the ignorant pieces of shit they are, fail to realize how much their words hurt.

“You can’t just fight a bunch of high school kids, Max,” Ian explained, “and what makes you think that violence is the answer?”

“Well, yeah, but Isaac’s had to deal with this....like, how long ago?”

As Mickey turned his head towards Isaac, the raven-haired boy responded with a hoarse voice. “A couple of weeks.” A pause. “I told Dad about it the night he picked me up from downtown.”

“Well, why not me, huh? We’re fucking bros, man. Why couldn’t you tell me?”

Isaac briefly bit down on his bottom lip and answered, “Because I thought you wouldn’t accept me for who I am.”

There was an uncomfortable silence after that. Mickey had one of his hands over his mouth, while the other one rested on his knee while his own leg bounced. Ian and Max just...stared at Isaac, speechless. Isaac hated disappointing his own family, but he’s been having doubts for weeks about this whole coming out thing to begin with. He’s heard about all of the relationships that have been broken because someone decided to come out of the closet. Ian and Mickey, they’re gay themselves, so telling them wasn’t a huge problem. Isaac was mainly worried about Max and how his older brother would see him after he came out. They don’t really talk about the LGBTQIA+ community that often, so Isaac doesn’t really know Max’s perspective on it. For all Isaac knew, Max could have been against the community as a whole, but again, Isaac wouldn’t have known for sure because he was too nervous to even talk about it.

Ian was the first one to break the silence in the room. “Isaac…we’re you’re family. Your brother, your dad, me - we’re all family here. You don’t have to be ashamed of coming out to us.”

“Yeah, what the fuck are you talking about?” Max added, trying to get a better look at his distressed younger brother. “If you want to be with a girl or a guy, who the fuck’s stopping you then? What made you think we would hate you or something for minding your own business?”

More tears fell down Isaac’s cheeks, and he lowered his head so he wouldn’t have to look anyone in the eye. “I didn’t know,” he spoke, his voice cracking a little. It broke Mickey’s heart just to see his son look so depressed. “I...it’s -” Isaac stammered, grabbing a hold of his shirt collar. “I didn’t want...I didn’t want you guys to get mad at me and shit like other families do with their kids.”

Mickey swallowed. “We’re not other fucking families. Okay?” The teen closed his eyes shut as more tears fell out of them. “Get that shit out of your head. We’re not gonna fucking disown you and shit because you like boys.” A couple of sniffles left Isaac’s nose, and then Mickey added, “We love you, son. We love you. You gotta remember that, Isaac. Alright?” Isaac didn’t reply, and his eyes were still closed shut. Mickey swiped his thumb across his mouth at the current state his son was in. Ian sat there, looking at Isaac and wishing there was something he could possibly do to help.

And Max? Well...he just sat there and stared ahead. That’s all he could do, especially after hearing how his own brother didn’t want to come out because he believed Ian and Max would turn out “like everybody else.”

That had to be the worst part about coming out: just assuming you would get yelled at and kicked out of the house because you’re not straight. Isaac doesn’t know this, but Max had been thinking a lot about this type of stuff, even as he had been on his campus the past couple of semesters. At Western Illinois, everyone just seemed to get along together, and everything felt right with the world, as Max believes it should be outside of his college campus.

In reality, however, it’s never that easy. Maybe Ian and Mickey are fine with Isaac liking boys - hell, even Max is okay with it - but Isaac’s life will never be that simple. There will always be someone frowning at him for wanting to be with another guy. There will never be a day Isaac stops hurting due to other people’s words and actions.

Isaac continued to cry, his shoulders visibly shaking and his face completely red. Mickey stood up off the couch and extended his arms out to the teen and said as gently as possible, “Isaac, stand up.” Isaac didn’t move. “Isaac? You hear me, man? Stand up.” The blue-eyed teen glanced up slowly at his father, unable to control his own breathing. It would be a matter of time before he had a panic attack, but at least Mickey would be there to get him through it.

Soon enough, Isaac was up off the coffee table and standing in front of Mickey, who tugged his son closer to him by the shoulders and eventually wrapped his own arms around him. Isaac kept crying, and Mickey rubbed small circles on his back, his cheek resting against Isaac’s temple. A sob or two later, and Mickey sighed through his nose. Mickey wanted the best for Isaac. That’s all he wanted. After enduring a terrible childhood, Mickey’s experienced what parents’ actions could do to their own children, and he wanted to set an example. He would never hurt Isaac the way Terry hurt him. Mickey wanted to make sure of that.

Mickey patted Isaac’s back a couple of times after Isaac’s shaky exhale vibrated against Mickey’s body. Mickey knows Isaac doesn’t have to worry about coming out to him, but Mickey certainly understands why he feels that way.

“I’m so proud of you, son,” Mickey whispered into Isaac’s ear as he continued to sob in his arms.    
“ _ So _ proud. Don’t you ever forget that, okay?” He could feel Isaac slowly nod underneath him, and that’s when Mickey went to place a kiss on Isaac’s forehead.

Ian watched as the two of them hugged it out, Mickey whispering praises and words of assurance into Isaac’s ear before he released him. Mickey held onto Isaac’s shoulders until Ian reached a hand out towards Isaac to grab him, slightly tugging him close so Ian could wrap his arms around him. Mickey sighed as he watched the exchange between Isaac and Ian, the redhead peppering the top of Isaac’s head with kisses. Ian’s arms were tight around Isaac’s torso, as if there was some force trying to take him away. But Ian held him like a lifeline. He loved his son so, so much, and Isaac had to know how much love and support Ian harbored for him.

Max gulped a little bit, feeling his heart drop a bit as he watched Ian and Isaac hug. He hasn’t seen Isaac cry this much since he was a little kid. The two of them had their moments where they didn’t get along, like when Max shoved Isaac into the pavement outside and scratched Isaac’s knee, or when Isaac broke one of Max’s toys. At the end of the day, Ian and Mickey would always remind them how much the two of them loved and cared about each other.

They were right. Max really did care about his little brother, even on days when he’ll say he doesn’t. Brothers and sisters always have rivalries between one another, but at the end of the day, they still care for one another.

Ian had released Isaac momentarily, and as he turned in Max’s direction, Isaac could feel himself getting smaller again. He understood why Max was shocked and let down at the fact that Isaac didn’t talk to him about the kids at school. He understands. At the same time, though, he needed Max to understand that Isaac’s own coming out process is a complicated task for himself, as easy as other people believes it should be. The Gallagher-Milkovich family doesn’t live in a world where everything is easy. No one does.

Isaac had his hands shoved into his pants pockets as he tore his gaze off of Max, his eyes focusing on their feet in front of them. His eyes continued to sting from the tears falling out of them, and his chest felt extremely heavy. Max watched as Isaac stood in front of him for a couple of seconds, choosing not to act or anything. Max didn’t want to give off the impression that Isaac should be uncomfortable around him, so he brought one arm around his little brother and pulled him into a tight hug. Isaac’s cheek was now on Max’s shoulder as the redhead comforted him the best way he could. More tears fell from Isaac’s eyes and down to Max’s shirt sleeve, but Max didn’t care. Isaac could cry on him whenever he wanted.

Mickey watched the two brothers hug it out in front of them and then felt a hand touch the small of his back. He turned his head towards Ian, who mouthed, “You okay?” Mickey nodded, though it would take a few minutes or so to collect himself from this very emotional family moment the four of them were having.

He’ll be okay. Isaac will be okay. Ian and Max will be okay. Everyone will be okay, because that’s what family -  _ their _ family - is all about.

**Author's Note:**

> I was originally gonna post this for National Coming Out Day, but real life was biting my ass. Oh well. You all still get a new fic from me anyway. :D
> 
> But seriously, I had been looking around on Tumblr at some of the discussions surrounding Mickey's coming out in season 4, and it got me wondering what would happen if Ian and Mickey actually discussed what led to Mickey coming out in the first place. I don't have a hundred percent clear understanding of how people interpreted it, or a hundred percent understanding of how the show specifically wanted to portray it. Still, I felt as though I needed to address it in this story somehow, because when I was writing it for National Coming Out Day, I feel as though it was appropriate. If anyone has any concerns about this, feel free to talk to me about it whenever you like. And to any LGTBQIA+ members reading this, don't feel pressured to come out, if you don't want to. You're free to do whatever you like, and either way, I'll still support you.
> 
> I hope everyone is having a good day/night. I'm still busy on my end with the Big Bang fics, school, other fandom stuff, etc., so prompts will take a while to finish, but I hope to get more out soon. I hope you enjoyed this story. Leave kudos/comments, because they're both appreciated, and happy reading. <3


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